Unions deny Dems convention cash

The Democrats are hitting up unions — their go-to cash cows — for last-minute donations to help pay for next month’s convention in Charlotte.

The response from some big unions? Tough.

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Union leaders insisted from the start that they wouldn’t help fill the piggy bank for this year’s Democratic National Convention after the party picked a labor-hostile location and at the same time made fundraising tougher by banning corporate contributions and capping individual donations. And with the event less than a month away, they’re sticking to their guns.

Labor unions aren’t slated to sponsor any official convention events, according to a recent convention itinerary obtained by POLITICO. Unions are also refusing to put up the money to back get-out-the-vote efforts they’ve funded in the past.

Heavy hitters like the AFL-CIO, the International Brotherhood of Teamsters, Laborers’ International Union of North America and the International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers say they won’t be making big money contributions this year.

Other unions are toning down their convention involvement with many opting to send a few staffers to engage with union delegates. And some, like the International Association of Machinists and Aerospace Workers, have said they are sitting out entirely.

“[T]here was a general disappointment in the selection because of the non-union hotels, the non-union accommodations in North Carolina,” said Chuck Rocha, president of the union consulting firm Solidarity Strategies and former political director of the United Steelworkers union.

“I think everybody is on the same page politically around a lot of different candidates, but the unions are going to invest in their members before they invest in a convention that’s being held in a place where there are no organized hotels, organized restaurants, etc.,” Rocha added.

It’s a far cry from 2008, when unions accounted for nearly $9 million of the $62 million raised to fund the Democratic Convention in Denver, according to campaign finance reports. Unions also cut big checks for delegate lunches, rallies and policy events on issues like immigration and housing.

And it’s clear that labor’s money is being missed. While some big unions, such as the Service Employees International Union, are giving, convention organizers were reportedly more than $25 million short of their $36.6 million goal as of late June. Democrats also cut the week shorter by eliminating Labor Day Monday from their schedule, then moved a planned rally and organizing event from the Charlotte Motor Speedway to the streets of uptown Charlotte.